


The Love of Family

by The_Consulting_Werewolf



Series: The Krisho Whodunit Files [4]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Implied Mpreg, KrisHo - Freeform, M/M, Murder Mystery, SuKai - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 01:10:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17777708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Consulting_Werewolf/pseuds/The_Consulting_Werewolf
Summary: Thirteen years ago, a murder shook a small town’s very core. Thirteen years pass and Sehun hardly has any memory of it since he was so young. Now, at the age of twenty four, he is going to begin his new job as a trainee constable and he is excited. His first real case is a body found at the beach and turns out, the man who was murdered was here too thirteen years ago.Sehun learns how memory is a fickle mistress and how some secrets should never be revealed.





	1. A MURDER

**Author's Note:**

> I am not tagging any relationships because frankly they all don't matter at the end....also, also, guess who wrote 9k words in a day just because she had no internet for a day

Junmyeon is the first to wake, as always. He opens the curtains and smiles at the view in front of him. The sunlight reflects off the calm surface of the sea and it makes Junmyeon happy, no matter how many times he has seen this view. Also, today is a special day: Sehun is starting his new job and Junmyeon wants to make the best breakfast for his son.

He winces a bit as he bends to pick his spectacles from the dresser. He is in his mid-forties, so it is not a surprise that every part of his body complains every now and then. He leaves his room and walks down the stairs, but frowns when he smells the sweet scent of bean paste soup wafting from the kitchen. He hurries forward and finds his husband, Jongin, already in the kitchen, making breakfast. Junmyeon grins, “You are up early.”

Jongin was tasting the soup when Junmyeon speaks, so he is startled and the hot liquid almost drips on his bare feet. He turns around and grins back, “Well, it is Hunnie’s special day, so I thought about getting up early and saving you the trouble.”

“That’s nice of you,” Junmyeon nods. “Do you need any help?”

Jongin points at the rice cooker, “Can you get the rice out? I think it is done.”

Junmyeon does as told and sets the table next. Sehun finally makes his appearance after fifteen minutes and he is already dressed in his constable uniform and his hair is slicked back, accentuating his sharp cheekbones and strong jawline. Junmyeon feels his heart swelling with pride as he cups his son’s shoulders and beams, “Look at you! You look so handsome!”

Jongin too comes forward and smiles, “Yes, gosh, and to think we were only sending you off to kindergarten all those years ago!”

Sehun flushes; he knew his parents were going to do this and make a massive deal about it. He rolls his eyes and frowns, “Guys, please. I will be returning home every day, you know.”

Junmyeon lightly swats the back of Sehun’s head. “Let us enjoy this. Soon you will be running off at the middle of the night to go save missus Gong’s cat or something.”

Sehun frowns, jutting his lower lip out as his parents laugh at his expense. He knows their small, sleepy seaside town of Heuksando is not that exciting. But it is summer and it is now peak tourist season, so the most violent crimes during this time are usually robberies, traffic accidents, drownings, people getting lost by the woods or slipping down the cliffs. However, he has worked hard to get here and he will be good at his job and make his loved ones proud.

He is pushed down on a chair and he watches—with a fond smile on his face—his parents bustling about, putting down bowls of food in front of him. Jongin and Junmyeon have been married twenty four years now and they only ever had Sehun. Sometimes, it does baffle Sehun how unlike Jongin he looks like. Junmyeon, the one who carried him, resembles Sehun more than Jongin but Sehun doesn’t think too much about it. For instance, the Jung twins look nothing like their parents either and people say they actually resemble their grandmother more. Even though Sehun has never met his Jongin appa’s family, he is sure that is why the only thing he got from Jongin is his height—though now Sehun towers over him by a few centimetres.

He finally leaves home after Jongin overfeeds him and Junmyeon packs him lunch. He wants to refuse the lunch, stressing over what his colleagues might think but Junmyeon was almost on the verge of tears, sending his child off, so Sehun takes the small bag from his father anyway. He did not want to upset them.

 

Jongin and Junmyeon stay by the doorway of their inn, watching Sehun hop on his moped and then drive down the slope. He finally disappears when the road dips and the two older men sigh. They share a smile and walk back inside. Junmyeon’s phone rings and he picks it up to his sister, Joohyun, saying, “Morning oppa. So, Jisung will be at the ferry dock by ten. He has his seasickness patch on, but—”

Junmyeon chuckles, “Hyunnie, this is not his first time here. I know, I know. I already have his cure and snacks ready.” Jongin looks at his husband, raising the coffee pot, eyebrows raised in question. Junmyeon nods at him. “I will be there to pick him up, don’t worry.”

“Today’s Sehunnie’s first day, isn’t it? Send me a picture! I want to see how my nephew looks like in an uniform! I may even use it to find him a wife, who knows.”

Junmyeon laughs as he sits down at the small dining table and Jongin hands him his coffee. “Don’t let Sehun hear that or else he will never talk to you again!”

“Oh please, where would he escape without letting his favourite aunt know?”

“You are his only aunt Joohyun.”

Joohyun scoffs and Junmyeon can imagine her rolling her eyes. “Anyway, take care of the brat for me and don’t let him eat all the snacks, okay? I know you are too weak for him, but please. He is only fifteen and I already had to pay for two cavity fillings!”

Junmyeon laughs; he talks some more with his sister as Jongin finishes his coffee and mutters, “I will go finish my sleep now. Call me if you need anything.” Junmyeon nods and Jongin leaves the kitchen. He slowly walks towards his room on the ground floor and Junmyeon hears the door shut. Even if they had been married for twenty four years, they haven’t shared a room for thirteen years of it.

The reason is simple really. Jongin and Junmyeon never married out of love. There is friendship, perhaps even affection, but both knew they were marrying for convenience. Junmyeon was pregnant and Jongin had to take responsibility. Sehun is the glue to their rather unconventional marriage. Now in their forties, it is not too strange to find married couples staying in different rooms, so Junmyeon is thankful for that. Sehun doesn’t ask and he really doesn’t want to tell.

Junmyeon gets up and gets going for the day. They are booked this season, completely. Earlier, Sehun would help them but now he can’t, so Junmyeon reminds himself to hire temps for this season. His nephew, Jisung, who is a regular ever since he could travel on his own, tries to lend a hand but Junmyeon feels too bad to see him work, especially when the kid comes down for vacation, away from the hustle and bustle of Naju. He also notes down all the groceries he needs to buy and soon, he finds it is time to go pick his nephew up from the ferry station.

Within ten minutes, he is at the station and in the next five, the large ferry docks. He finds Jisung’s lanky form easily and he waves the kid over. Jisung bounds up to Junmyeon and engulfs his uncle in a hug. Junmyeon laughs when he realises Jisung probably grew another extra inches in a year alone. The kid pulls back and grins down at Junmyeon, who cups his shoulder and says, “You are not wearing your patches?”

Jisung rolls his eyes, “I don’t need them but mom insists, like every time is my first time here.”

Junmyeon laughs again and grabs one of the bags Jisung is carrying. As they make their way back to the van, Junmyeon’s eyes land on the television behind the glass walls of the small office. He halts when the screen shows the image of a very familiar face and the lines underneath it read:

_Convict Wu Yifan of Heuksando has been granted permission to leave; his case now up in court again._

Then they flash some bulletins about “the case”:

_Thirteen years ago, Wu Yifan was charged of the homicide of his husband Zhang Yixing. Police captured him while he was trying to get rid of evidence. However, lack of evidence led to failure of Wu being convicted of homicide, instead he was only imprisoned for obstructing justice and destroying evidence. To this day, Wu remains mum about how he came to find the knife used to stab his husband._

The bag drops from Junmyeon’s hand and his head buzzes. He feels his knees weakening and before he knows, a dark cloud fills his vision and he sways.

 

“Hey, new kid,” a gruff voice calls for Sehun, who was busy helping another constable typing reports of all the traffic incidents of the last ten years. The small station is still adapting to technological advances and most new recruits are tasked with turning all the physical reports into digital ones. Sehun hates it, even though he has been on it for only four hours. He looks up to find his immediate supervisor say, “Your dad fainted at the ferry station. Someone named Jisung called us.”

Sehun’s eyes widen. He forgets all about the report and rushes to the only hospital on this island. It is not very far from the station so he is there under ten minutes. He spots Jisung right away, pacing at the reception. The teenager halts when he spots his cousin and he cries, “Oh, hyung! Thank god you are here!”

Sehun pants, “What happened? Is appa okay?”

Jisung shakes his head, “I don’t know. The doctor is still looking at him. He came to pick me up and we were walking back towards the van when he suddenly fainted!”

Sehun frowns, his heart rabbiting in worry. “Did you call Jongin appa?”

Jisung nods, and right then, Jongin too hurries into the reception. He sees his son and nephew and joins them, his forehead creased in worry. Before he can ask, the door on their right opens and Junmyeon walks out of it. He sends them a weak smile and Sehun jumps on him, groaning, “Appa! What happened?”

The doctor stands behind Junmyeon and she smiles, “Don’t worry Sehun, it was just a heatstroke. Your appa works too hard, but the weather is to blame as well.”

Jongin nods and curls a hand around Junmyeon’s elbow. “You okay?”

Junmyeon nods, putting his hand over Jongin’s. “The van?”

Jongin smiles, “Jungsu from the station called me. I went over and brought the van, and Jisung’s luggage too, don’t worry.”

Junmyeon exhales in relief and then moves to placate his son. “Don’t worry Hunnie, I am fine. It’s what the doctor said. I was slightly dizzy and I forgot to eat before leaving, so there’s that.” He then looks at Jisung, “Sorry my darling, I must have scared you.”

Jisung pouts but he shakes his head. “It’s okay uncle. I am not scared.” They all know he is lying, so they end up at laughing at him.

Sehun takes the moped back to the police station after bidding his parents goodbye. Jisung heads into the passenger seat and shuts the door. Junmyeon hands Jongin the keys to the car and mutters under his breath, so only Jongin could hear him say, “Yifan is out of jail, Jongin. What if he returns?”

Jongin inhales deeply; that would explain why Junmyeon fainted. His heart too thuds loudly against his ribs as he understands the implications of what Junmyeon said. He looks down at his husband’s worried eyes and says, “It is okay hyung, we will see what happens.”

“Uncles?” Jisung rolls down the window and pops his head out. “Everything okay?”

Jongin and Junmyeon both plaster smiles on their faces they do not feel and nod. They share one last glance before getting inside the van and driving back to their home.

 

While Junmyeon had left for the station in the morning, Jongin was the one who signed a guest in. The man had come down from Seoul and looked vaguely familiar but Jongin couldn’t place him. He showed him to a room on the second floor and returned back to the front office. Then, in the chaos of Junmyeon fainting and Jisung moving into a room downstairs, Jongin had forgotten about their guest, a Mr Kim Jongdae.

It is only during lunch time that Jongin recalls and he palms his forehead. When Junmyeon asks, he says, “We have a guest.”

Junmyeon presses his lips and scowls, “Jongin, you…go ask them if they want lunch. You are lucky we haven’t even started preparing anything.”

Jongin nods and hurries towards the room, only to find it locked from the outside. The man must have gone into town for lunch then. He heaves in relief. He informs Junmyeon and his husband orders him to go buy more groceries instead.

Sehun returns by six and he finds Jisung outside helping Jongin with some boxes. Sehun smiles when he realises what they are doing. “Fireworks?”

“It’s tradition,” Jisung sings the words. “We must have some fireworks on the first night of my stay.”

Junmyeon, who was sitting by the door to the garden, laughs, “I thought you’d grow out if it Jisung.”

Jisung shakes his head. “Never!” He then whips his phone out and points it at Sehun, grinning, “Now, say cheese hyung.”

Sehun doesn’t say cheese, though he frowns and looks on bemused as Junmyeon laughs. Jisung explains, “Mom wanted to see how you looked in an uniform.”

Sehun instantly realises what his aunt is up to and he points a finger at Jisung, “Tell your mother that if she shows my picture to anyone else again, I will never, ever talk to her!”

Jisung pokes his tongue out and laughs, “Nah, mom says you love her too much to do that!”

Jongin laughs at the flabbergasted expression on his son’s face. He claps Sehun’s shoulder and says, “Anyway, go inside, freshen up, okay? We made some iced tea this afternoon. We want to hear all about our constable Kim’s day!”

Sehun feels his face heating up again and he grumbles as he heads inside. He had a very boring first day—he isn’t sure what he could possibly say. As he heads inside, he almost walks into a human body. The person squeaks and Sehun jumps back, apologies on the tip of his tongue when he realises just who he almost bumped into. Dahyun straightens up and smiles up at him, not before surreptitiously raking her gaze over his uniform, “Oh hey Sehun. Your dads hired me here for the summer!”

He wonders if his dads are playing a joke on him. Dahyun has been his crush since his high school days. Of all the people in this town, his fathers hired her? What sort of cosmic joke? But he needs to say something instead of gaping at Dahyun and her angelic smile. He shakes his head and says, “Uh, oh? That’s cool.”

Dahyun chuckles again and steps to the side. “We already have three guests here. I am glad I can be of help. Jongin uncle helped me so much during high school.” Jongin was a teacher before his early retirement five years ago and he used to give tuitions when they moved to the island to the kids here.

Sehun nods again, struggling to find words and decides to just retreat instead of opening his mouth and saying something stupid again.

He comes down soon after and finds Jisung and Dahyun deep in discussion as to when they should play with the fireworks. Junmyeon suggests after dinner and they agree. Sehun too adds a hand as they prepare dinner, which is freshly caught fish, rice and a light vegetable stew served alongside a lighter, less spicy version of kimchi Junmyeon makes every year for summer. They also prepare some snacks to go along with drinks as a couple of guests come down seeking refreshments. Sehun and Dahyun serve them chilled beer with strips of fried chicken.

Dinnertime rolls in soon after and all the three guests come down to the eating area. Jisung too helps them serve the food and water. The family and the sole employee would only eat after he guests are done, so they wait a while. The two guests leave after dinner, sending Jongin and Junmyeon compliments on the cooking. Dahyun is helping clear the dishes up with Junmyeon when the last guest walks up to Junmyeon and bows, “Mister Kim? I don’t know if you remember me…”

Dahyun had headed back to the kitchen and Junmyeon is alone with the stranger in the room. However, he seems less like a stranger as Junmyeon looks at him carefully. The straight salt and pepper eyebrows, the close buzz cut and the tilted corners of his lips feel familiar, like Junmyeon had seen them somewhere in a previous life. The man speaks again, “I am inspector Kim Jongdae; we met in Seoul.”

Junmyeon gasps; he remembers now. This was the man on _that_ case. He takes a step back and fear, the anxiety of the past grips him again. He bows his head, trying to hide how scared he is as he mumbles, “I am sorry sir, I don’t remember you.”

Before Kim Jongdae can say anything, Junmyeon grabs the tray of glasses and rushes out of the room. He is panting by the time he reaches the kitchen where Dahyun is washing the dishes. She sees Junmyeon’s flushed face and heaving chest and she cries, “Oh no, uncle, are you alright? I heard from Jisung you fainted this morning.” She wipes her hand on her apron and gently pushes Junmyeon down on a chair, “Do you need anything?”

Junmyeon shakes his head. Dahyun can’t possibly give him what he needs—he needs that detective gone. He can only surmise why the man is here. If Yifan is back, it is only obvious why Jongdae is here. Will he never get any peace from the crimes of the past?

 

Jisung wakes up early despite getting to bed so late. Dahyun, Sehun, Jongin and Jisung played with the fireworks late into the night. They had asked the guests as well and only two of them joined. The last one, a man from Seoul, stayed in a room from where he could see the fireworks. Jongin set him up with drinks there and returned to them.

He likes coming here every summer vacation. His friends always want him to stay in Seoul, to hang out with them all month but he finds no pleasure in that. They don’t understand how beautiful summer mornings are by the sea or how delicious the fish that come out from it. He loves the briny air, the cool waters, and he loves the crickets chirping nonstop during these days. And if he is lucky, he may even spot some fireflies when the sun goes down.

At first, he would come here with his mother but after her small catering business took off, she found it hard to come here, but she would send him off anyway. Jisung won’t lie, he made his first solo journey here at thirteen and he thought he was going to die. The way he cried when the ferry docked three years ago and he found his uncle waiting for him…

The people in the house are still mostly asleep. He finds Junmyeon prepping for breakfast. He asks if he needs help, but his uncle denies, telling him to go enjoy himself. Jisung was planning on an early morning swim, so he packs some of his things and skips down the sloped road towards the nearest beach.

The closes beach doesn’t have sand, only small, round pebbles and huge columns of stone on one side. Since it is low tide, the sea is calm and inviting. Jisung shivers in anticipation, imagining diving into the cool, cool sea. He has almost reached the beach when he notices something strange. At first, he thinks it is a piece of cloth lying on the rocks. But when he inches closer, he realises it is a person lying face down on the rocks. Jisung drops his bag and rushes over, worried the man may have fallen here, probably in an inebriated state, last night.

As he rounds the body, he gasps when he recognises the man. However, he stumbles and falls back on his bottom when he realises the man is probably dead. How else can he explain the ashen expression and the empty eyes still wide open and unseeing?

 

Sehun’s face is grim even though he feels terrible for feeling excited. Heuksando hasn’t had a murder occur in _years._ The beach is now overrun with people—policemen and forensics from Naju mostly along with a few local cops (like him).

Jisung had dialled for Sehun straight when he discovered the body of Kim Jongdae. Sehun arrived here first with his supervisor, who took one look at the body and called for backup. Apparently, he had seen a corpse like that before. The forensics confirmed it too—the man was dead from carbon monoxide poisoning.

Sehun, to be honest, as a junior officer, has no business here but since it was his cousin who discovered the dead man and his parent’s inn where the victim was staying, it is all suddenly his business. And Sehun is thrilled (even though he feels terrible and guilty about it). He is taking notes and he has been tasked to help the big shots from the city—two detectives named Lu Han and Kim Minseok. Sehun soon realises they are married, what with the subdued flirting and the matching rings on their fingers. He offers them to stay at his home though, which they accept.

Jongin and Junmyeon are questioned, obviously and Sehun feels weird as he stays standing, watching his parents get interrogated by the officers. They give clear answers to every question thrown their way and Jongin even shows them the rooms Jongdae stayed in and later drank his soju in. Lu Han is standing in the latter room, fingers tapping on the window sill as he asks, “Why this room?”

Junmyeon answers, “He wanted to see the fireworks, so we had him sit here.”

Minseok looks around the room and hums, “It doesn’t look too used.”

Jongin laughs, “Well, we mostly use this room for storage but since it is the only room looking into the garden on this floor, mister Kim didn’t mind staying here.”

Lu Han asks, “Do you have any ventilation issues here mister Kim?”

Jongin shakes his head. “Just a few years ago, we had the heater malfunctioning but we had it fixed immediately.”

Lu Han smiles and looks at Sehun, his eyes glinting, “Say, young man, that right?”

Sehun is confused as to why the older man was dragging him into this but he nods. “Appa had it fixed.”

Minseok next asks, “Did you know if he had a car?”

Junmyeon replies, “Well, I didn’t see him driving one but you can ask Taeyeon, she owns the only rental here.”

Lu Han and Minseok leave the room first. Sehun follows but he pauses in front of his parents. Junmyeon smiles, clearly understanding what his son is thinking from his furrowed brows and his lower lip trapped under his teeth. He pulls Sehun into his arms and rubs the back of his head as he mumbles, “It is okay baby. You don’t have to look so guilty.”

Sehun feels Jongin’s palms rubbing down his back as well as he says, “Yes. The poor man stayed here, of course you guys need to know what he did and all.”

Sehun chuckles as he pulls back and scratches his neck. He grins, “You guys talk like you get questioned by police all the time.” He had his gaze trained to the floor, so he misses the quick, terrified look his parents share at his words.


	2. THE RETURN OF A MURDERER

Yifan steps on to the ferry station and takes a deep, deep breath. God, he had missed the smell of the sea. Thirteen years in prison made him more appreciative of his small, sleepy town. He knows he will not be welcomed with open arms but he still has his house here and the Wu family trust. He will manage to survive.

As he walks towards the taxi station, he thinks of his old life, of Yixing and finally of Junmyeon. A small shudder passes through his body and his heart pounds when he thinks of the man. Should he go pay him a visit? Would he be welcome? He knows he may not be but this desire inside him grows for even a glimpse. He knows Junmyeon is still in Heuksando with his husband and child—who must be a man now. Something twists in his gut at that thought; people and life moved on as he remained stuck in prison and he doesn’t know how he should process that.

The taxi takes him to the address he has memorised by heart. He finds the house as it is—the big iron gates are locked and there are creepers crawling all over the rods and the garden has overgrown, taken over the house and the front lawn in the last thirteen years. Yifan chews the inside of his cheek. There needs to be much work done it seems. The plants have also broken through the cement and some patches of plaster have fallen, exposing the brick wall. Yifan sighs; he needs to call his lawyer tonight and dip into that trust sooner than later.

He decides to stay in a hotel nearby and he checks in. He orders some lunch and decides to take a nap on a real bed. First, he takes a shower and he relishes in that. The hotel bathroom doesn’t have a fancy stock of products but it is enough. They are nicely scented and Yifan sighs as the hot water washes the suds running down his back. He is turning forty seven this year, fifty in the next three years. The defined abs he used to have has softened over time, his knees hurt during cold, wet weather and he has more grey `in his once jet black hair that he can keep count of. He is drying his hair now, wondering whether a dye job would make him look better or worse.

He is about to take a nap when someone knocks on the door. Yifan thinks it is his food but when he opens the door, he finds a young, tall man blinking at him. “Sir? Mister Wu?” he asks.

Yifan realises the man is a constable. News travelled fast, it seems. But he has been made free of those charges, so he wonders what this is. He says, “Yes, how may I help you?”

The man flashes a badge and says, “I am Constable Kim Sehun and I have been asked to escort you the station to question you about the death of Mister Kim Jongdae.”

Yifan gasps; his heart thunders in his chest as he stares at Sehun. He hears the name mentioned as well and the thundering only increases. He feels his mind blanking out and he just nods, feeling oddly separated from the rest of his body.

 

Sehun helped the detectives gather information about the dead man, Kim Jongdae. The man was a former detective in Seoul and he has worked in Naju as well. Digging up about Kim Jongdae brought out a startling piece of news. Sehun hardly remembers it, he was only eleven then or something but the last murder that happened in his town took place thirteen years ago. A man named Zhang Yixing was found stabbed near the beach by the oldest apartment complex in town. The prime suspect of the case, Zhang’s husband, Wu Yifan, was found trying to throw the knife into the sea. He was immediately charged but they failed to actually commit him since his fingerprints weren’t found on the knife handle—in fact, there were no fingerprints at all. However, he was charged with obstruction. Kim Jongdae was the lead detective on the case and word has it, he tried his damnedest best to make Yifan talk but the man wouldn’t. It was an open secret that Yifan was shielding someone.

Jongdae returned to Heuksando a day before Yifan’s release and both Minseok and Lu Han agreed that Jongdae might have come here to try to talk to Yifan again; thinking perhaps after all these years in prison may change his mind and make him open up. Minseok and Lu Han tracked down Yifan and found the man in town, in a hotel, and Sehun got tasked to bring him in.

As he walks towards the car with Yifan beside him, he glances at the man. He might be a bit older than his fathers and taller than him. His hair is mostly grey now yet he looks handsome in a very distinguished sort of way. But there are deep lines on his face and he may have not smiled in a while. Prison does that to someone he supposes. Sehun almost feels bad that he is dragging the man back to a police station.  

Yifan is quiet and only spares Sehun a glance when he opens the door for him. That is also when he asks, “May, may I ask how old you are?”

Sehun smiles back, “Twenty four sir.”

“Ah, I thought you might be younger.”

Sehun starts the car and he asks, “You lived here?”

“Yeah, yeah I did. A long, long time ago.”

Yifan doesn’t add anything after that, falling into a deep silence. Sehun doesn’t bother him either. They finally reach the station and Sehun escorts him to the makeshift office for the Naju detectives. Sehun wishes he could stay inside and hear the interrogation but he knows he can’t. He is only junior level, they will never let him take part in any active investigations unless absolutely necessary. Plus, he is the legs of the substation here, not the brains. He knows if he wants better work, he would have to move but he is not ready for that yet.

Yifan is let go after fifteen minutes. Sehun’s desk is right outside, so he watches him leave. He gets to his feet, about to ask if he can give Yifan a lift back but Yifan shakes his head, smiling, “It’s okay young man, I will walk. Got to get myself reacquainted with the town.”

Sehun nods and watches him leave, his long limbs slowly making their way out of the station. Sehun looks at his retreating back with an odd feeling in his chest. He has seen Yifan before, he has lived here all his life and so has Yifan, so how come he can’t remember him? Come to think of it, the years from 2006 to 2008 are actually a blur from him. His parents told him he had suffered some sort of head injury when he was eleven, which made him lose some of his memory from the ages of eleven to thirteen. But Yifan? He can’t place it but he can feel like the man’s shadow touched his life at some point of his life.

 

Yifan crumbles the moment he is out of sight of the station. Sehun, little Sehun is now a man. Junmyeon’s son. _His son._ He feels his stomach turning and he knows he needs to sit down, process the thing. He also needs to understand Jongdae’s untimely demise. It is all too much and it hasn’t even been a whole day since his release.

His feet take him down the walkway flood embankment and he is not looking where he is going. He is vaguely aware of his surroundings even, so when a soft voice calls for him, he hardly hears it. But it calls again, this time in urgency and Yifan turns around.

It is Junmyeon.

Time seems to stand still. Yifan can’t hear or see anything beyond Junmyeon. The sun is high up in the sky, the light glaring, unforgiving but it can’t take away the way Junmyeon still manages to hold all of Yifan’s attention. He must have been out shopping since he is carrying two large bags, and he smiles, “Thought it was you. Your back is even worse than I last remember.”

There are deep lines on the corner of his eyes but those eyes—they are still the same. The sunlight melts into those deep, dark eyes, tinting them amber and his cheeks still lift up the same way. Yifan chuckles, “And you are more beautiful than I last remember.”

Junmyeon’s cheeks darken as he looks away. The sea breeze lifts his dark hair and they fall into his eyes. Yifan can’t look away. He shoves his hands in his pockets and clears his throat, “I met Sehun.”

Junmyeon’s eyes widen, his grip tightening on the bags. He takes a deep breath and slowly exhales. “Did he, did he, I mean, did you have to go the police station?”

Yifan nods, “They took me in for questioning regarding Jongdae’s death.” Junmyeon swallows and shakes his head. Yifan mutters, “I didn’t say anything.”

“I know you wouldn’t,” Junmyeon smiles. Yifan smiles back. Junmyeon walks closer and cups the side of Yifan’s face. Yifan is startled by the sudden touch. Junmyeon’s smile is soft, indulgent and Yifan is almost too afraid to look directly into his eyes. “Sehun looks so much like you.”

Yifan takes a deep, staggering breath. He curls his fingers around Junmyeon’s wrist and he whispers, “Can I, can I—” All it takes for Junmyeon is to nod and Yifan pulls him into his arms. Junmyeon relents so easily and Yifan’s heart jumps into his throat when he finds how Junmyeon still tucks perfectly under his chin.

Yifan pushes his face into Junmyeon’s neck and sighs, “Oh my god, Junmyeon, Junmyeon, I spent all those years inside thinking of the day when I will get to hold you like this again.”

Junmyeon seems to melt into his arms and Yifan feels like a part of him missing is finally found. They lean back, so they could both look at each other, take in the changes their bodies went through and the time that passed. Yifan wants to pull him closer and kiss him but he knows he can’t. Junmyeon is a married man. He has a family. Yifan has no part in it. So, he steps back and says, “You, you should go. Can’t have anyone finding you hugging a known criminal.”

Junmyeon’s smile slips off his face. He puts his hands on Yifan’s chest and takes a deep breath. “You are not a criminal.”

Yifan swallows; his jaw tightening as he shakes his head. “Don’t, don’t say that. You know why I did what I did. And I have no regrets.”

Junmyeon looks away from those eyes, the pain, the suffering he tries so hard to bury is scratching the inside of his chest, ripping his flesh to shreds. He can feel the tears burning behind his eyelids. He feels Yifan’s calloused, warm hands cup his face. Yifan whispers, “I mean it, I do Junmyeon.” He steps back and Junmyeon misses the warmth immediately. “Now go, seriously. You don’t need them to see you with me.”

Junmyeon watches Yifan turn his back on him and walk away. Junmyeon grips the railing for support and tries to push the air back into his lungs. He shuts his eyes and fears the future now. He married Jongin for convenience, he needed to. He was having an affair with a man he shouldn’t have.

He was only eighteen when he met nineteen year old Yifan. The Wus were amongst the wealthiest in the town and they had big businesses in Naju and Gwangju. They had already settled a match for Yifan but the heart what it wants and they fell in love. Four years into their secret relationship, Junmyeon found out he was pregnant and Yifan was whisked away to China to get married. They knew this day was coming and they had run out of ways to fix the problem.

Jongin was the kid next door Junmyeon used to babysit. He was far too young, only nineteen, when Junmyeon’s life was falling apart but he stepped in, knowing it well that Junmyeon may not love him and the child he will be raising is not his blood. Their parents had to approve. Junmyeon was pregnant and Jongin had accepted responsibility. What else was anyone going to do? They got married and Jongin went off to college and Junmyeon stayed back in Heuksando with his parents. Junmyeon was surprised when Jongin took to Sehun so easily. He had watched Jongin only grow to love Sehun over the years and Sehun has only known Jongin as his other father. They love each other unconditionally and Junmyeon is so happy about that. But he wonders how long that lie will last.

He returns to the hotel after an hour of sitting by the sea and thinking. When he returns, he finds Jongin poring over some papers, his glasses hanging on his nose. Junmyeon puts down the bags and says, “I, I saw Yifan.”

Jongin puts his glasses down and nods. “Well, that’s expected. He is back. Will he stay?”

“I suppose so.”

“What,” Jongin leans back in his chair, “Will you do now hyung?”

Junmyeon sighs and sits down. “Twenty four years is a long time Jongin. I don’t know if I can just leave you like that. Plus, Sehun doesn’t know. I don’t know if he can know or needs to.”

Jongin takes a deep breath. “Hyung, we are what we are. I don’t regret marrying you or raising Sehun with you.”

“Sehun loves you,” Junmyeon mutters. “I can’t, won’t take that away from him.”

Jongin leans forward and grabs Junmyeon’s hand. It is true that he doesn’t regret marrying Junmyeon; he meant that from the bottom of his heart. He knew about Yifan and Junmyeon, and he thought it was unfair with how their relationship ended. He only wanted to help his hyung. And he never found the reason to leave after Sehun was born. It was love at first sight for him when he held Sehun for the first time at the hospital. He was tiny, crying his lungs out and perfect. The moment Sehun first called him “appa”, Jongin knew he would do anything for him, his child, even if he had no biological tie with him.

“It is alright hyung,” Jongin says, “I know you love him.”

Junmyeon shakes his head. “It’s too late for that now. He thinks that it would be too wrong if anyone knew about me and him. And what will I say to Sehun? That the man he calls father isn’t his father?”

Jongin looks away, his gaze dropping to the desk. His voice is low when he says, “But Sehun only forgot. What if he remembers one day?”

Junmyeon gulps. “Then, we will cross that bridge when we get there.”


	3. FATHER AND SON

It has been three days since Kim Jongdae’s death. So far, they have no leads, no suspects. Sehun had watched with wide eyes how the two experienced detectives worked. It was all very exciting but he was sort of disappointed that they haven’t been able to find the criminal yet. Yifan had been clear of suspicion within hours. He was nowhere near Heuksando when the murder occurred, which the forensics confirmed happened the night before the corpse was discovered.

Lu Han had the theory that perhaps someone followed the detective to settle an old score. Minseok didn’t agree too much with it. Sehun’s parents were under suspicion too but they got cleared as well when their vans were tested and they didn’t find any trace of carbon monoxide in it. The heater too was checked and found in perfect order. Sehun felt truly terrible when he saw how cooperative his parents were being.

Now, they were going nowhere. Every person Jongdae sent to jail is still in jail serving lengthy sentences. Sehun wants to help but he doesn’t know how. He had missed dinner and he has three missed calls from Jongin and three more from Junmyeon, even some from Jisung. Dahyun too sent a text. Sehun wondered who gave her his number—he suspects it was Jisung. His cousin can be annoying at times.

He decides to head home after staring at the wall for some minutes. He heads for the nearest restaurant though; he is hungry. He sees aunty Qian still has her shop open and he strolls inside. Qian smiles when she sees him coming. They are almost closing up but she waves Sehun over to a table anyway.

Song Qian has been living here for a long time and she has often babysat Sehun. Her noodle shop is legendary, serving food from her homeland along with a few Korean side dishes. Sehun always liked coming here and still does. He sits down under one of the large picture walls. Qian collects old photos from neighbours, from people leaving, from old archives and hangs them all on the wall. Sehun always liked looking at it. There are so many pictures here he always feels like he will never be able to see them all.

He looks directly up ahead and his gaze lands on one image in particular. It seems like it was someone’s birthday and he frowns when he sees his father with his head on the shoulder of Wu Yifan. Junmyeon and Yifan knew—know—each other?

Qian returns with a steaming bowl of noodle soup. She finds Sehun gazing with great intent at a picture. She follows his gaze and hums, “Ah, that was Yifan’s twentieth birthday. He is back in town, isn’t he? I thought I saw him by the market that day.”

Sehun points at the picture, “My dad knew him?”

Qian sits down with a long sigh. “I don’t know how much I should say but yeah, they knew each other.” She cups her chin and smiles, “They tried to play it down but anyone with eyes could see how crazy they were for each other.”

Sehun frowns, “They were dating?”

Qian nods, “Yeah. They broke up when they dragged Yifan away to marry Yixing.”

“You all knew each other?”

Qian nods. “Yeah, yeah we did. Yifan’s family was a conservative one. He had no choice really. He moved to Naju soon after, didn’t even come for Junmyeon and Jongin’s wedding.”

Sehun picks up a piece of meat and chews it. He swallows before speaking, “So, you remember Yixing’s murder?”

Qian chuckles, “Is it the boy I used to carry on my back asking or a cop?”

Sehun smiles, “The boy you carried on your back aunty.”

Qian smiles, “Yeah, yeah I do.” She leans forward slightly and says, “I always found it strange that Yixing was here that night. Yifan would swing by Heuksando every now and then because they do own the biggest trawler company here but Yixing? He hated this place. Told me how he hated the salty air and the fishy scent. Well, he didn’t grow up here, what would he know? Even called us a bunch of smelly fishermen.

“Then, that night, I remember it you know. I served dinner to Yifan and I was the one that told him I had seen Yixing in town. Yifan was taken aback. He went off to find him. The next morning, I hear Yifan is being arrested for killing Yixing.” Qian shrugs, sneering slightly, “They say not to speak ill of the dead but I don’t think anyone liked Yixing and Yifan managed to stay married to him for eleven years.”

Sehun presses his lips, aware that all the uncles and aunties are gossipy in this place. He thanks her for the meal and the company and makes his way home. As he walks in the humid night, he thinks. He knows about Wu Mixed Industries. They own the big hotel by the bay, some stores and the biggest trawler. A nagging doubt suddenly makes space in his brain. What if Yifan also came to check on Junmyeon? But his father wouldn’t cheat on Jongin, would he?

He halts; he observes things, he does no matter how much his parents try to not show him. But he has been aware of the strangeness of the marriage his parents have since he was a teenager. They weren’t affectionate, they didn’t celebrate any anniversaries, and they didn’t even share the same room. Sometimes, it seemed more like they were just two best friends who married to raise Sehun. He has never questioned it, but right now he can’t help but think that Junmyeon and Yifan were still going strong all those years ago.

A light bulb goes off inside Sehun’s head and he turns around. His phone rings and he finds it is Jongin calling. He picks up the call and before his dad can get a word sideways, Sehun says, “Appa, did Junmyeon go behind your back with Yifan?”

“What? Sehun? What the hell are you talking about?”

“Just, appa, I am going to head over to Yifan’s hotel and ask him about it. Maybe he wasn’t talking then because he _did_ kill Yixing. And I don’t know, but he might have managed to come here undetected and then he killed Jongdae!”

He disconnects the call, not caring to hear what Jongin had to say. He runs all the way to the town centre and locates the hotel. The poor receptionist is half asleep when Sehun slams the counter and shouts, “Which room? Wu Yifan is in which room?”

The man fumbles and mutters out the room number. Sehun takes the stairs two at a time and knocks as loud as he can. He hears Yifan shout, “Hold your horses man!”

Yifan opens the door and Sehun barges his way in. Yifan must have been deeply asleep since there are lines on his face from being pressed to the pillow and his hair is sticking up on one side of his head. Yifan doesn’t get to even shut the door or ask what is going on when Sehun says, “I have a question for you mister Wu. Did you or did you not have an affair with my father?”

Yifan gapes as he stares at Sehun and in his fury, Yifan can’t help but think how alike they look. He shakes it off and says, “Sehun that is not a very nice question. You can’t come in here to say such things.”

“Why? Did you kill him because he got to know? Is that why you didn’t want to talk because it would expose your affair?”

“Sehun—”

“No!” Sehun shouts. “I’m tired! What are you hiding mister Wu? You killed Yixing and then you killed Jongdae too! What else Mister Wu?”

“Sehun!”

Sehun turns around and finds his parents standing at the door. Both Junmyeon and Jongin enter the room and shut the door behind them. Sehun points at Junmyeon and cries, “You! Did you cheat on dad? Did you kill Yixing instead?”

Junmyeon is taken aback by the words but it is Jongin who walks up to Sehun and slaps him across the face. Yifan gasps and Junmyeon puts a hand over his mouth, choking on a sob. Jongin is furious at Sehun and it shows. The veins on his neck pop out as he grits his teeth, “You will not talk to Junmyeon like that.”

Sehun gapes, “But dad…”

Junmyeon sits down on the bed and Yifan turns to him. Junmyeon says, “Sehun, we all lied to you. We have lied to you for years.” He locks his gaze with Yifan and mutters, “Jongin is not your dad, Yifan is.”

Yifan shuts his eyes and plops down on the bed beside Junmyeon. Jongin steps back, hands on hips as he looks out the window. Sehun just widens his eyes and his mouth drops. He glances between Junmyeon, Jongin and Yifan, hoping one of them would say that those seven words were just a joke. Jongin adds, “And they didn’t kill Jongdae, I did son.”

Junmyeon makes a choking noise and falls forward on his knees. Yifan rubs his face and Sehun looks at Jongin, aghast, “What?”

“I killed him because he came back asking more questions,” Jongin sighs. “He figured it out. He figured out who killed Yixing.”

Yifan whispers, “Oh god no, tell me he didn’t…”

Jongin shakes his head, “He knew, he figured it out. He found out that Sehun wasn’t my biological child and he traced Yixing’s steps, along with yours and mine and Junmyeon’s. It didn’t take him too long to figure out none of were anywhere near the place where Yixing was killed, even though we used to live in those flats once upon a time.”

“So, who killed Yixing?” Sehun asks, his eyes wild as he looks between his parents and Yifan.

Jongin exhales, “Oh baby, I need you to know something. We love you, we all love you.”

“What, what do you mean?”

Junmyeon slowly gets to his feet. Yifan tries to push him down on the bed but Junmyeon doesn’t let him. He gently shoves the hand away and steps up to Sehun. His voice is soft, like the times when he would try to tell Sehun something terrible, “Baby, I am so sorry. Remember when we told you that you hurt your head when you were eleven? That you lost memories of those years due to your head injury? We lied, you were never hurt.”

Sehun feels his eyes welling up. All the lies the adults told him are unravelling and he doesn’t know how to understand it all. “You lied? Why did you lie?”

Junmyeon feels his heart breaking at how shattered Sehun sounds. He cups Sehun’s face and he says, “We lied because we needed to protect you. You forgot the whole thing, your brain shut out the bad things and we thought to just let you forget.”

Sehun shakes his head, stepping back. “Forget? Forget what?”

Jongin says, “You killed Yixing, baby. You killed him and Yifan tried to cover it up.”

Sehun stumbles back, his back hitting the wall. He slides down the wall, pulling his knees to his chest and putting his head between his legs. He is shaking and there is cold sweat beading on his neck. He feels a hand rest on his head and he looks up to find it is Yifan. The man says, “It wasn’t your fault. Yixing was drunk, looking for a fight when he went over to Junmyeon and Jongin’s apartment. It’s true I would come down to meet Junmyeon but we never, he never cheated on your dad. We would meet for coffee or lunch and I would return by the last ferry. But Yixing knew that my heart would never belong to him, so he got jealous.

“I was good at hiding it and I hid it well for eleven years, but one day he figured it out. So he came down here, hoping to catch me and Junmyeon but he couldn’t. There was never anything to find. He decided to confront Junmyeon next but he found you in the apartment instead.”

Junmyeon then adds, “He was drunk, so drunk. I am not sure what happened but I think he told you about your real father because when I found you in bed next morning, covered in blood, you asked me about Yifan, and I had never taken his name in front of you.”

“You followed him outside,” Yifan says, shaking his head. “You were angry and you stabbed him. Junmyeon found the knife under your bed and he saw the news, and it didn’t take too long for him to piece together what happened. I came over and took the knife, planning to throw it away but the cops got to me first.”

Sehun’s cheeks are wet with his tears and the words open some floodgate in his brain. There are flashes of colours, of screams, of his father’s tear-stained face. He suddenly recalls the blood, on his hands, on his clothes, on his bed sheets. He can’t remember Yixing or the act of it but he remembers the anger, the words, and the drunken man slamming the door to their small apartment. He recalls the wet sound of metal slicing through flesh and he screams.

Yifan pulls him into his arms and strokes his back, trying to calm him down. Sehun claws his back, his head pounding as he cries and cries. He doesn’t know how long he weeps but soon he feels like he has run out, so he leans back and he looks into Yifan’s sad, miserable eyes. Yifan wipes his tears away and softly says, “I had to protect you Sehun. The thought of you going to jail would have broken Junmyeon and I couldn’t let it happen either, so I took the blame though no one believed me. You were so young, so little, so scared. None of us could imagine you being taken away.”

“And that’s why Jongdae returned,” Jongin says. Sehun turns his tear-stained face and his red eyes towards the man he has been calling father for years. “I had to protect you as well Sehun. The statute of limitations hadn’t passed; you would have taken to court. I couldn’t let Jongdae get to you after all these years.”

Junmyeon kneels beside Yifan and runs his fingers through Sehun’s hair. “Please, please don’t cry Sehunnie. It wasn’t your fault, it was never. You were too young and he made you too mad. You didn’t know what you were doing.” He wipes the new tear tracks on Sehun’s face and tells him, “Please Sehunnie, you are not to blame.”

Jongin too joins them on the floor and curls his fingers around Sehun’s elbow. “We had to protect you.”

Sehun takes a moment to look at each men in the room. Yifan, Junmyeon, Jongin. All these years, all the secrets. Sehun’s head whirls with all the new information but he knows he is loved even if the truth brings him no comfort. He turns to Jongin and says, “But the cops came, they didn’t find anything.”

“And they will never. The heater was fixed but the line in the room wasn’t,” Jongin tells him. “Why do you think we used that room for storage? After he died, I went and fixed the wires too. Then—”

“Then your dad and I took his body to the beach,” Junmyeon finishes. “Now it is up to you what you will do. You can turn us in if you want.”

Sehun shakes his head. These people protected him for years. Even if he works for the law, he can’t do this to his parents—his real ones and his adopted one.

 

**One year later**

They put the case under the unsolved files and life moved on. Sehun is packing his bags, picking up the last few things in the room he has lived for twenty five years. He will miss these four walls but he has his mind made. He has applied for the transfer four months ago and he didn’t think he would make it, but he did. Junmyeon was, of course, upset but supportive. Jongin too sent his support from Incheon where he lives now. The divorce was finalised three months ago and his parents peacefully separated. Jongin knew he was getting between Yifan and Junmyeon, so he calmly offered the divorce himself.

Junmyeon and Yifan started dating a month ago. Sehun, at first, was unsure how to act around Yifan but the man himself said to him one day:

_“You don’t have to pretend Sehun. I was never in your life. I only got your father pregnant and then left like a fool that I was. Jongin raised you—in all ways, except biological—he is your father. You don’t need to call me dad or anything. I just hope now I get to be a part of your life, no matter in what capacity.”_

It was easier after that. Sehun hung out with Yifan every now and then and found he had plenty in common with his real father. They slowly got to know each other. Junmyeon too got his second chance, and it was funny how flushed he would get every time Yifan so much as looked at him, came to pick him up for a date or paid him a compliment.

The very last bag is packed and as Sehun zips it up, he hears a knock on his door. He turns around to find Junmyeon standing at the doorway, a soft smile on his face. “Hey, all packed? Don’t forget your toothbrush.”

“Yes appa,” Sehun says, not without an eye roll. “And I packed the extra three packets of toothbrushes you had me pack as well.”

“Well, what if you run out?”

“Appa, for the last time, I am going to Naju, not the Siberian wilderness.”

Junmyeon rolls his eyes this time. He shakes his head next, “Anyway, come down for lunch. Yifan is making noodles, your favourite kind.”

“Be down in a second.”

Junmyeon leaves him and heads back to the kitchen. Sehun looks around his room for the last time and walks downstairs. He hears the two men laughing in the kitchen and he smiles when Junmyeon rises on his toes to kiss Yifan. They hear him shuffle into the kitchen and they quickly separate, both blushing too hard.

As they sit down to eat, Jisung joins them and Sehun thinks about the events that changed his life a year ago. The summer went and the new year is here. Sehun hasn’t made peace with the fact that he took a life but he cherishes and understands everyone who protected him, He never turned Jongin in, obviously, even though he feels guilty of that too. There was never anything he could do. He couldn’t send his father to jail, he owed the man that.

Jisung grins, “So, can we go to the fair in the evening? I hear they are going to open a candy stall!”

Junmyeon scoffs, “Your mother will kill me!”

They all erupt into laughter at that and Jisung just pouts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story was largely inspired by A Midsummer Equation, a Galileo mystery. If you love j-dramas and are even vaguely aware of Keigo Higashino, you know what I mean ;)


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